


15.20 The Scene That Should Have Been

by remanth



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Destiel - Freeform, Fix-It, M/M, post 15.20
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:29:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27645520
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/remanth/pseuds/remanth
Summary: After dying, Dean finally gets a chance to reunite with Cas in Heaven and tell him how he really feels
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester
Comments: 11
Kudos: 89





	15.20 The Scene That Should Have Been

**Author's Note:**

> Since it seems like my trust in the writer’s room was misplaced, here's my fix it fic for 15.20. If you want it done right, you gotta do it yourself. And dropped plot lines irk me.
> 
> Don't get me wrong, the acting was amazing and I'm thrilled to have been on the ride with Jared, Jensen, Misha, and the rest of the cast. But the writing, man, the writing. These actors, especially Jensen and Misha, and these characters, especially Dean and Cas, deserved better than unresolved conversations, unanswered questions, and dropped season themes.
> 
> And I'll be honest. The ending was okay. It was the perfect ending had Cas not existed and had there not been over a decade of character development. Hence why I only feel the need to add a scene to address questions left.

_What are you gonna do next?_

The words were simple but woke a longing in Dean’s chest. His car, the open road, and a good song were calling his name. It was Heaven, so of course he’d be able to drive his Baby here. After a nod goodbye to Bobby, Dean slid behind the wheel. It felt perfect, felt familiar, felt home. And turning the key, hearing Baby’s engine roar into life in that so-familiar throaty roar was just right.

Kansas on the radio, a perfect fall day, and a stretch of open road with nothing in his way. Dean took off down the road, bobbing his head to _Carry On Wayward Son_. There was peace, now that he was done, and he could cry no more. Tension eased in his chest, a tension that had been there since he was four and their father had shoved baby Sam into his arms and told him to run. It was okay now. There was a peace.

_Well, Cas helped._

A timeless eternity later, somewhere down the never-ending stretch of road, more of Bobby’s words came back. Dean had died believing Cas trapped forever in the Empty. Though he probably should have guessed that Jack would have done something about that. The new God wouldn’t leave Cas trapped forever. Not if there was something he could do about it. And apparently, he had.

Well, it was perfect too. Jack and Cas tearing down all the walls, releasing the souls that had basically been prisoners in Heaven. Letting people roam freely, create their own Heaven, be with the people they loved. Tearing up Chuck’s script and letting people... just be people. It was what Heaven should have been all along, instead of sealing each soul away in their own personal bubble.

Dean slowed, turning the radio off as he stared down the road. It was on a road like this one, with fall trees displaying gorgeous foliage, that he’d once hallucinated Cas walking down. When the angel had still been trapped in Purgatory, when Dean still had believed he’d failed to get him out, he’d seen Cas here because he’d wanted him to be here so desperately.

There were a million things he’d wanted to say then. There were a million he still wanted to say.

And the most important thing to say.

Making up his mind, another longing waking in his chest, Dean pulled over to the side of the road and put Baby in park. Listening to the purr of the engine, his hands resting on the wheel, Dean took a deep breath to try and calm his suddenly racing heart. It was hitting him. Now he had the time. Now, there weren’t enemies beating down the door, deals waiting to be fulfilled, people taken before he could even process what they’d said. Now, Dean could say his piece.

It started with a prayer.

 _Cas_ , Dean prayed, closing his eyes and bowing his head slightly, _I don’t know where you are right now but I hope you’re listening._

_According to Bobby, you and Jack tore down the walls up here in Heaven. So it means you got out of the Empty. Or Jack got you out. Either way, you aren’t there, you’re free. And..._

Here, Dean paused his prayer and swallowed hard. Even now, it was so hard to just speak what was in his heart. All his life, he’d been taught to bury everything but the anger, the righteous anger at things that went bump in the night. All his life, he’d swallowed every emotion but that anger, feeling them burn in his chest as he did. But he had to say it. This was Heaven. No more fighting what he felt. And this was Cas.

_And, look man, it’d be really great to see you again. I mean, I’m here in Heaven. I died so, you know, you know where I am. I missed you, Cas, when the Empty took you. There’s things we need to talk about. There’s things I need to say. Can you... can you meet me? Please, Cas._

After finishing his prayer, Dean sat back, eyes still closed. Part of him was terrified Cas wouldn’t show up. Maybe he’d misunderstood what Bobby meant? What if Cas was still stuck in the Empty and all Dean had done was twist the knife that much deeper? Or what if Cas didn’t want to talk to him? He’d admitted his love but what if he’d decided that that was enough? What if he’d changed his mind?

The other part longed to see Cas again with an intensity that surprised even him. He’d been a constant in Dean’s life for years now, he’d gone against his family and even God for him and Sam, had chosen the Winchesters and humanity time and time again. Dean had come to terms with the fact that he loved Cas some time ago. He’d just believed that because Cas was so different, so huge and cosmic and unimaginable, that he couldn’t feel the same way humans could. That he could love, yes that was clear, but that he couldn’t be _in love_. Not like Dean was with him.

“Hello, Dean.”

Dean didn’t jump, hearing the familiar voice speak those familiar words. Instead, he opened his eyes, turned to the person sitting in the passenger seat of the Impala, and smiled. The final weight in his chest fell away in a burst of absolute love as Cas smiled back with that tender, soft expression Dean had memorized.

“Hey, Cas,” Dean said. Taking his hands off the wheel, Dean turned his whole body to face Cas. Then he just looked, taking in everything he could of Cas’s face and how he seemed. “How you doing?”

“I’m good, Dean,” Cas nodded, his eyes never leaving Dean’s face. Then his smile faded a little, his expression starting to turn sad. “I had hoped you would have more time before ending here.”

“Hey, no, no, don’t you go all sad on me, Cas,” Dean said, one hand reaching out automatically, pausing for a second, then ending on Cas’s shoulder. “It’s okay. I’m all right with this. I went out helping people. _You_ gave me that chance.”

Nodding slowly, Cas reached up and patted Dean’s hand. Then he just rested his hand over Dean’s. His skin was warm, the touch soft, and Dean was struck breathless for a few moments at the simple contact. At the wealth of affection and love that Cas could show in a single gesture.

“I am glad to see you, Dean, even if you have passed to Heaven. What about Sam? Is he here?” Cas asked, making no move to remove his hand.

“No, Sammy’s fine. He’s good.” Dean reassured Cas. And his heart beat faster over the fact that neither of them were moving their hands. But it felt good. Felt right. “He’s gonna be fine.”

At that, a silence fell over both of them. It was comfortable but there was something tense and anxious in it. But not a bad anxious. At least for Dean. It was the anxious of anticipation, of words burning on his tongue that demanded they be spoken. There was just the tiniest kernel of fear that kept him prolonging the silence. Then he looked, really looked, at Cas’s face.

There was absolute peace on his face. His lips were quirked in a small smile at the corners and his blue eyes were relaxed. They held such affection as they looked back at Dean, affection that had always been there but Dean hadn’t allowed himself to really see. Now he did and he was kicking himself that it had taken both of them dying, again, for him to allow himself to see. To want with the hope of reciprocating.

“Cas?” Dean said, squeezing his fingers unconsciously on Cas’s shoulder as he looked out the windshield towards the open road. And possibility.

“What is it, Dean?”

“There’s... there’s something I wanted to tell you. Have to tell you,” Dean managed to get the words out. He swallowed hard again and met Cas’s eyes. “Something I didn’t have time to before.”

“I’m listening,” Cas said softly when Dean fell silent. He gently pressed Dean’s hand on his shoulder in reassurance. “What did you want to say?”

“Well, first, thank you,” Dean said after a few false starts. But as he spoke, the words came easier, drawn out of him like water falling into a well. And he was falling, into the deep blue of Cas’s eyes. Into hope and love. So much hope. So much love. “Thank you for telling me what you did. How I changed you and how you love me because you feel I am capable of so much love. Of how everything I do was for the love of family.”

“It’s true,” Cas started to say before Dean shook his head with a shushing noise.

“Your words helped me and Sam fight Chuck. Helped us be more than he originally planned us to be. Planned me to be. I wasn’t just a killer, just a blunt instrument designed for violence and death,” Dean explained. He scooted a little closer on the bench seat, unaware of moving as he tried to make Cas understand what his words had meant. “Because of you, we saved the world. You saved the world, Cas, by loving me. You saved _me_.”

Dean trailed off again but this time, it wasn’t because of uncertainty. This time, he fell silent so he could touch. Sliding his hand up Cas’s shoulder, Dean cupped his cheek. It was the same as he’d done it so many times before, only this time, Cas wasn’t dead or dying or injured. There was no terror here, no worry that he’d lost him. There was only peace and love.

“I should have told you then, should have found the seconds before you were taken,” Dean continued, his voice soft and wondering and a little sad. “Hell, I should have told you years ago instead of dancing around how I felt. I’m sorry it’s taken me so long. You didn’t deserve that and I’m sorry.”

“How do you feel, Dean?” Cas prompted him, his voice remarkably calm for the way his heart thundered in his chest. It had been enough to know Dean knew he was in love with him. It was enough to save him. But now, was it possible to have more? “Tell me, please.”

“I love you, Cas,” Dean murmured, his eyes never leaving Cas’s. “I am in love with you and I have been for years.”

“Dean,” Cas said, Dean’s name the only word his lips were able to form.

But it was enough. Because Dean was leaning forward, pulling Cas’s face towards him. He watched him the entire time, making sure he wasn’t making a mistake, wasn’t doing something unwanted. And then he closed that final space between them, his lips meeting Cas’s in a kiss that Dean had imagined every time his eyes had flicked down to Cas’s mouth.

The kiss was unhurried and soft. It was love and affection and _finally, finally this_. Dean learned the shape of Cas’s mouth against his, tasted his breath, smelled the scent of ozone that always seemed to cling to Cas’s skin. They broke the kiss at the same time, moving just enough to lean their foreheads together. They both smiled, the movement feathering softly over their lips.

“I love you,” Dean said again, the words full of wonder and a new confidence.

“I love you, too,” Cas replied, his voice trembling a little.

Then it was Cas pulling Dean in for a kiss, his arms wrapping tight around Dean’s waist as if they belonged nowhere else. Dean went willingly, sliding his hand up in Cas’s hair and twining his fingers through it. This second kiss was still unhurried but hungrier, full of want and need. It went on and on, perfect and delicious. Dean lost himself to the sensation, joy bubbling in his chest. They kissed each other breathless, broke apart to breathe for a moment, then they were kissing again as if nothing else in the world mattered.

When they broke the kiss a third time, Dean tucked his head into Cas’s neck in a hug. He smiled when Cas pulled him even closer so that their bodies were pressed against each other along every inch on the bench. Dean relaxed, finally letting go of every bit of stress and tension.

Now. Now he was home.

“Let’s go home, Dean,” Cas whispered against his temple. “Let me show you what I’ve made.”

“Now that’s a plan,” Dean replied, pressing a kiss over Cas’s pulse because he could. “Let’s go home, Cas.”

Following Cas’s directions, Dean drove to a house not far from where Bobby had told him John and Mary lived. It was a comfortable place, with a lived-in, well-loved look that Dean immediately liked. And inside, it was almost like an amalgamation of everywhere Dean had felt was home on Earth. It was Bobby’s house and the bunker and Baby, somehow portrayed but not copied. It felt perfect.

Dean took Cas’s hand in the doorway, twining their fingers together and pulling him closer. He smiled as Cas pulled him into a hug, unable to stop touching now that he could. They shared another kiss before walking into their home, the door closing behind them.

~*~*~*~

Decades later, when Eileen passed before Sam, she was greeted by Dean, Cas, and Bobby. She was introduced to Mary and John, to the rest of the hunters, to the extended family Sam and Dean had made in their time on Earth.

In her turn, she shared stories of her and Sam’s life. How they’d married, how they’d made a life together, how Sam had become a nexus of help and research for hunters. How they’d had a son they’d named Dean in honor of the brother Sam had lost and they’d both loved.

And a year later, it was Sam’s turn to come to Heaven. He was greeted by Dean and Cas, their hands linked as they sat in chairs by a table. A third chair sat empty across from them, three beers still wet with condensation sitting on the table.

“Hey, Sammy,” Dean said, smiling at his brother. “Welcome to Heaven.”

“Hey,” Sam said, looking at himself in surprise. He’d been old when he’d died but now he was near the same age he’d been when Dean had died. Then he looked at Dean and Cas’s joined hands and smiled. “I see you guys finally figured your shit out.”

“We did,” Cas replied, smiling at Dean so widely his eyes crinkled. “It only took dying. Multiple times.”

“Well, I’m glad for you guys,” Sam said, taking a seat and grabbing a beer. He held it out to Dean and Cas.”To family?”

“To family,” Dean and Cas echoed, picking up their beers and clinking them against Sam’s. 

They drank, enjoying the peace and the sun and being together again. They’d done their best, they’d fought for the world and each other, they’d saved the world and each other. They’d made it a better place for the people who would follow after them. It was time to rest.

A throat cleared itself behind Sam.

“Hey, speaking of family,” Dean said, gesturing behind Sam with his beer.

Sam turned to see Mary and John, Eileen, Bobby, everyone who’d become part of their extended family behind him. He launched himself out of his chair into the arms of the people he loved while Dean and Cas looked on, smiling and drinking their beers, their hands firmly clasped together. 

They were never letting go again. Here, in Heaven, they didn’t need to.

**Author's Note:**

> OK, I'm not going to lie. This was sappy but I feel like it's warranted after 15 years and saying goodbye. I teared up a few times writing this. I hope you all enjoy it.


End file.
